Laundry flatiron



Jan. 19, 1954 E. SOKOLIK 2,666,274 LAUNDRY FLATIRON Filed Oct. 6, 1950 Patented Jan. 19, 195 4 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE l My present application is a continuation in part 'of my application Serial No. 746,783 filed May 8, 1947, and now abandoned, for Laundry Flat Iron and relates to improvements in pressing irons and deals particularly with irons useful in pressing garments having buttons sewn thereon dispersedor in rows and equally useful in press ing buttonless garments and garments having flounces, plaits, gathers and the like.

Irons have been produced with grooves or flanges thereupon suitable for pressing beneath portions of buttons sewed to the garment. These.

irons make it possible to press the garment beneath a portion of each and every button close to the thread by which the button or buttons are sewn to the garment, but not astride the thread without angling the iron, or betweennormally spaced apart row of buttons without sliding the iron forwardly between each two adjacent buttons subsequently backwardly from therebetween.

The object of such iron is to press only closely to the thread by which the button is sewn beneath a portion of each button without raising each button perpendicularly upon its edge, whereby the straining of the thread, the garment, or breaking the button is prevented.

An object of my invention resides in providing an iron having a construction which enables the portionof the garment astride the button as well as beneath a portion of the button to be pressed without angling the iron as the same is being propelled and in the case of a row of spaced apart buttons without inserting the pointed end between each two adjacent buttons. By sliding the flange of the iron beneath a portion of a button and along one side of the thread thereof and subsequently along the other side of the thread, the

entire garment area surrounding the buttton, or V in a row of spaced buttons, the area between the buttons, is pressed.

A further object of this invention is to provide a structure whereby the garment may be pressed beneath the buttonwithout straining the thread, the garment, or breaking the buttons as the flat iron is propelled along side the buttons;

These and other objects of my invention will be more clearly and fully set forth in the following specification and claim.

In the drawings forming a part of my specification:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation view of a flat iron showing'the general "construction thereof.

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the butt end showing the ledges formed within the sides of the body.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section on line 3-3 Figure 1, showing the flange dimensionally increased from the front end to the butt.

Fig. '4 is an elevation of the butt of a modified form showing the flanges projected laterally from the body.

The flat iron is indicated in general by the letter A.

The flat iron includes a pressing body which is indicated in general by the numeral 7 and a handle structure indicated by the numeral 8.

As the handle structure includes no part of the present invention, it will not be described in detail. The pressing body I may be somewhat varied in shape, particularly the rear end-portion, and in the form illustrated includes a pressing bottom I4 merging with the sides I3.

Each of these sides I3 has a convexly bowed front end-portion I5 converging at the pointed end II with the other.

It is important that the front end-portions I5 are convexly bowed, and modified by a recess 9, formed preferably in both of the convexly bowed front end-portions I5 of the sides I3 to attain results subsequently disclosed.

The shape of the rear end I2 is illustrated as blunt, but this is not important and the posterior side portions I! may be of any shape. A shape slightly arcuately converging to each convexly bowedend-portion I5 is illustrated.

A feature, as indicated in Figures 2, 3 and 4 of the drawings, consists in providing, preferably both sides I3 with a groove I8 extending preferably the full length of each side I3 from the pointed end II to the rear end I2. This groove I8 is disposed slightly above the pressing base M to form the flange I9 coplanar with the pressing base I4 of the pressing body I. These flanges I9 preferably slightly increase dimensionally, particularly in width, from the pointed end I I to the rear end I2 and are so pitched and so dimensionally increased as to be adapted for buttons 20 of various sizes normally sewn onto garments 2|, to ride upon, when the flange I9 is slid alongside the thread beneath a portion of the button 20, at an acute angle, thereby preventing straining of the thread 23, garment H, or breaking the button 20.

Another feature of my present invention, as best indicated in Figure 3, resides the provision of an iron having convexly bowed front end-portions I 5 of each side I3 thereof converging to the pointed end I-I. Preferably both of these bowed end-portions I5 have a concavely arcuate recess 9 merging with convexly arcuate shoulders I0 formed therein. Each recess 9 including its shoulders It, comprises nominally the medial substantially one-third of the bowed front end-portion [5 of each respective side [3, so that the shoulders It cooperate with the respective concavely arcuate recesses 9, whereby the flange i9 is expeditiously slid along underneath a portion and closely to the thread 23 of each and every button 20 sewn to the garment 2|, and whereby the garment 2! is pressed on one side of, and astride the thread 23 by which the said each and every button 2b is sewn, simultaneously, up to a predetermined distance, which normally is at least up to the diametrical line of the said each and every sewn button 29, and in the case of a row of normally spaced apart buttons 20, the portions of garment 2i between the buttons 20 of the row. The convexly bowed front end-portion of each side It with a recess ii formed intermediately therein, presents a conformity, so that the shoulders Hi thereof reach between the buttons in a row of buttons and at the same time the pointed end I i is caused to approach each button on the same side it on which the iron is propelled.

In Figure 3 of the drawings I disclose a series of buttons 26 which are arranged along a center line 2d and are stitched to the garment 2! by fastening thread 23. As will be noted from this iigure, when the center button of the series illustrated is engaged in the recess 9 so that the button is resting upon the flange it, the center line 2 extends over the flange lQat least up to the diametrical line of the buttons 29;. The shoulder portions it of the flange it astride the recess ii extend preferably over the center line 2 As a result the garment 2i, between the buttons of a row is pressed as the iron is moved closely along the row of buttons.

In View of the fact that the center line 2:3 extends generally over the flange 19, it is necessary that the iron travel along a wavy path in order to completely press the garment 2i. However, the buttons 2t themselves tend to guide the iron in its path and by exerting slight lateral pressure upon the iron i as it moves along the row of buttons 26, the iron will automatically travel along the necessary path to completely press the garment 2 i At the same time, the recesses 9 do not interfere in any way with the normal use of the iron in pressing garments of any type. I

It is recognized that'the conventional iron is curved toward the front or pointed end and that accordingly the conventional iron is capable of partially pressing the garment 2! between the buttons, if thebuttons 2i are'spaced a suificient distance apart, but it definitely will not press astride individual buttons as it engages them convexly. the buttons are fastened normally closely together, it is impossible in most instances adequately to press the area between the closely spaced apart buttons without inserting the pointed end i i of the iron between each adjacent two buttons. By forming the concavely arcuate recess S with convexly arcuate' shoulders it in side of the iron at a point substantially distant from the front pointed end ii of the iron, the shoulder portions it of the flange it are sufficiently bulged to reach astride each intermediate button in the recess Q and the adjacent buttons to adequately press this area. As a result considerable time and effort is saved in pressing the garment 2 i. The flange iii, the recess 9 and the shoulders it, cooperate to produce an iron of optimum utility. 1

However, with most garments in which The construction illustrated in Figure 4, is quite similar to that shown in previous drawings. The iron shown in this latter figure is indicated in general by the letter B and differs mainly from the iron A in the shape of the iron body 25 above the flange 19. In place of having an elongated groove It along each side of the iron as in the previously described structure, the iron 13 is provided with a laterally extending flange It on each side thereof projecting outwardly beyond the remainder of the iron body. In the case of the modification shown in Fig. l, both the body portion 25 and the flange 26, although not specifically shown, would have the convexly curved portions l5, disclosedin Fig. 1, and both body 25 and the flange 26 would be laterally depressed into a recess identical with recess a, previously disclosed, and therefore would in all respects conform with the general disclosure of Fig. 3.

In accordance with the patent statutes, I have described. the principles of construction and operation of my pressing iron, and while I have endeavored to set forth the best embodiments thereof, I desire to have it understood that these are only illustrative thereof and that obvious changes may be made within the scope of the following claim without departing from the spirit of my invention.

What I claim is:

A laundry flat iron for pressing fabric having a row of buttons secured thereto comprising, a body portion having a lower fiat ironing face, said body portion having sides, the forward portions of said sides converging forwardly and providing a forward tapered portion, said sides having a continuous recess which extends from the rear end of one side to the rear end of the other side and around the reduced end of the forwardly tapered portion, said recess forming a flange, the lower face of said flange forming a continuation of said ironing face, the upper face of the flange being disposed adjacent to said ironing face so that the flange is vertically thin, said flange being provided upon each side of the forwardly tapered portion with two convex outer edges and a concave outer edge disposedbetween the said convex outer edges, said outer edges being arranged in a longitudinal group which longitudinal group is confined within the length of the forwardly tapered portion, the inner wall of the recess upon each side of the body portion conforming to the contour of the outer edges of the flange, the arrangement being such that the buttons will enter the recess and slide upon the vertically thin flange and will be held in a generally horizontal position.

EDWARD SOKOLIK.

References Cited in the file of this patent 

